Of-marriage-and-single-life赏析整理.doc

Of marriage and single life译文：成了家的人，可以说对命运之神付出了抵押品因为家庭难免拖累事业，而无论这种事业的性质如何所以是能为公众献身人，应当是不被家室所累的人因为只有这种人，才能够把他的全部爱情和财产，都奉献给唯一的情人——公众而那种有家室的人，恐怕宁愿把最好的东西留给自己的后代 有的人在结婚后仍然愿意过独身生活因为他们不喜欢家庭，把妻子儿女看作经济上的累赘还有一些富人甚至以无子嗣为自豪也许他们是担心，一旦有了子女就瓜分现有的财产吧有一种人过独身生活是为了保持自由，以避免受约束于对家庭承担的义务和责任但这种人，可能会认为腰带和鞋带，也难免是一种束缚呢！ 实际上，独身者也许可以成为最好的朋友，最好的主人，最好的仆人，但很难成为最好的公民因为他们随时可以迁逃，所以差不多一切流窜犯都是无家者 作为献身宗教的 ，是有理由保持独身的否则他们的慈悲就先布施于家人而不是供奉于上帝了作为法官与 师，是否独身关系并不大因为只要他们身边有一个坏的幕僚，其进谗言的能力就足以抵上五个妻子作为军人，有家室则是好事，这正可以在战场上激发他 们的责任感和勇气这一点可以从土耳其的事例中得到反证——那里的风俗不重视婚姻和家庭，结果他们士兵的斗志很差。

对家庭的责任心不仅是人类的一种约束，也是一种训练那种独身的人，虽然在用起来似很慷慨，但实际上往往是心肠很硬的，因为他们不懂得对他人的爱 一种好的风俗，能教化出情感坚贞的男子汉，例如像优里西斯（Ulysses)那样，他曾抵制美丽女神的诱惑，而保持了对妻子的忠贞 一个独身的女人常常是骄横的因为她需要显示，她的贞节似乎是自愿保持的 如果一个女人为丈夫的聪明优秀而自豪，那么这就是使她忠贞不渝的最好保证但如果一个女人发现她的丈夫是妒忌多疑的，那么她将绝不会认为他是聪明的 在人生中，妻子是青年时代的情人，中年时代的伴 ，暮年时代的守护所以在人的一生中，只要有合适的对象，任何时候 结婚都是有道理的但也有一位古代哲人，对于人应当在何时结婚这个问题是这样说的：“年纪少时还不应当，年纪大时已不必要美满的婚姻是难得一遇的常可见到许多不出色的丈夫却有一位美丽的妻子这莫非是因为这种丈夫由于具有不多的优点而更值得被珍视吗？也许因为伴随这种丈夫，将可以考验一个妇人的忍耐精神吧？如果这种婚姻出自一个女人的自愿选择，甚至是不顾亲友的劝告而选择的，那么就让她自己去品尝这枚果实的滋味吧.Social Effects of Marriage and Single LifeThroughout the short essay Of Marriage and Single Life, Francis Bacon compared marriage with single life and listed disadvantages of being single, intending to persuade single men to join in marriage. After reading the essay for several times, I got a feeling that rather than stressing on practical benefits that men can get from marriage, Bacon focused on the benefits which married men can bring to the society.A married man can be more loyal to the country. Although wife and children are sometimes thought to be impediments to what they want to do, they surely can make the husband more responsible both for the family and for the country. On the contrary, single men will face less resistance, for they have no families. As Bacon said in his essay, “unmarried men are best friends, best masters, best servants, but not always best subjects, for they are light to run away, and almost all fugitives are of that condition” (“Of Marriage and Single Life”). By saying this, Bacon concerned far more than the interests of individuals. Looking in a macroscopic view, he thought that if a man is single, he can get more freedom, which is the most ordinary cause of single life, to betray the country and run away. On the other hand, if a man gets married, he could become more disciplined and loyal. For a married man have a lot to care about, especially at the time when husband is the pillar of the family. Just suppose he intended to run away from the country, firstly he should think about the settlement of the whole family—his wife and several children, and how he can make money in an entirely new place to feed all of them. Unlike him, an unmarried man doesn’t need to think about these problems, thus has more choices and less concerns. To me, running away to look for a better life is a matter of personal choice. But in Bacon’s mind or at least in his essay, what really matters is not the happiness of men, but the interests of the country.In another sentence that supports his idea, Bacon wrote, “it is indifferent for judges and magistrates, for if they be facile and corrupt, you shall have a servant five times worse than a wife” (“Of Marriage and Single Life”). Since a single man can be free from the “girdles and garters” (“Of Marriage and Single Life”) of marriage. Without the supervision from a wife, and someone to care about, he may do whatever he wants. He might develop some bad habits harmful to the society and run off the track. Single men “are more cruel and hard-hearted (good to make severe inquisitors), because their tenderness is not oft called upon” (“Of Marriage and Single Life”). Although they may endow their love and money to the country, what the society needs in order to be stable and harmonious is the tenderness from everyone’s heart. While “wife and children are a kind of discipline of humanity” (“Of Marriage and Single Life”). Humanity means the quality of being human, such as the kind feelings, sympathies with others and tenderness. The love from his wife and children of a married man can cultivate him into a man softer and kinder. However, if a country is filled with cruel and hard-hearted people, who single men tend to become, some negative impacts will occur and an ill social climate will be formed. In this sense, a man that has got married is better than one that is still single for the development of the country.Apart from that, a man with wife and children can be more brave and devoted on the battlefield. “The generals commonly in their hortative put men in mind their wives and children” (“Of Marriage and Single Life”), because with their wives and children in mind, they are more determined to fight for the country and protect their families from suffering. On the contrary, a single man would behave badly, like Turks that are vulgar and base, since they only had themsel。